Wednesday links: Seahawks living up to the hype?

And as Seattle Times columnist Jerry Brewer writes today, any objective view so far of the Seahawks (including WR Doug Baldwin, above making a TD grab against Minnesota in a Bettina Hansen photo) is that they have lived up to the immense hype that greeted them during the off-season, making them a rarity in Seattle sports. Says Brewer in part:

Normally, the bye week is a necessary stress reliever for football fanatics. It’s an absolute must because this game of overreaction wrenches every emotion imaginable. You always want more, but when the break arrives, you realize it’s good for your health.

The 2013 Seahawks are different, however. This is the bye, but there is no break, not in terms of interest. They’re 10-1, the first team in the NFL to reach double-digit victories. They’re not without their flaws, but they’re an overpowering team with a clear opportunity to win a championship. Though many anticipated this scenario when the season ended last January, the Seahawks have managed to be even better than those visions in a lot of ways. Or maybe they’ve just met expectations so well that reality seems like a fantasy.

So far, the Seahawks have been the rare Seattle team worth every drop of their hype. No city gets excited about its teams as quickly as Seattle does, and that often leads to disappointment. That has been especially true since 2008, the perfect-storm year when Seattle sports hit rock bottom.